This chapter contains David’s song of praise (also recorded in Psalm 18), which was probably composed shortly after the battle on Mount Gilboa where King Saul fell. It marks the fullfillment of the promise made to David when the prophet Samuel annointed him to be king over Israel. David gives us a beautiful list of metaphors that describe God.<\/p>\n
David describes God as a rock of refuge, where we are secure from all hostile attacks. As believers, we have learned that we never have our backs to the wall<\/em> but rather we always have our backs to the Rock<\/em>. In addition to safety, a large rock provides a place of shade and rest in a hot, desert wilderness. As a young shepherd boy, David probably sat many times in the shadow of just such a rock, leaning his back against it to rest. David also wrote in the Psalms that the rock was a place of sweetness, there was honey in the rock. To the believer, sweetness and life are found together in the Rock, even when the world offers only bitterness and death. God is our place of safety, our shade from the heat of day, and our place of refreshment.<\/p>\n The Hoover Dam, built on the Colorado River in the Black Canyon, was completed in 1936. It was both the world’s largest hydroelectric power generating station and the world’s largest concrete structure. The Hoover Dam is an arch-gravity dam, designed so that the more pressure applied against it, the more it is wedged into the solid rock, and thus the stronger it becomes. That is a good illustration of how our own walk with God should work. If our lives are really built on the Rock, then the more pressure exerted against us, the more our lives will be firmly wedged into Jesus our Rock, and the stronger we will stand.<\/p>\n “LORD, please be our Rock of strength, rest, and sweetness today.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n =============================================================<\/p>\n\n\n\n 2 Samuel 22 KJV<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1<\/sup>\u00a0And David spake unto the\u00a0LORD\u00a0the words of this song in the day\u00a0that\u00a0<\/em>the\u00a0LORD\u00a0had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul: 2<\/sup>\u00a0And he said, The\u00a0LORD\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;\u00a03<\/sup>\u00a0The God of my rock; in him will I trust:\u00a0he is<\/em>my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.\u00a04<\/sup>\u00a0I will call on the\u00a0LORD,\u00a0who is\u00a0<\/em>worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.\u00a05<\/sup>\u00a0When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid;\u00a0\u00a06<\/sup>\u00a0The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me;\u00a0\u00a07<\/sup>\u00a0In my distress I called upon the\u00a0LORD, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry\u00a0did enter\u00a0<\/em>into his ears.\u00a08<\/sup>\u00a0Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations of heaven moved and shook, because he was wroth.\u00a09<\/sup>\u00a0There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.\u00a0\u00a010<\/sup>\u00a0He bowed the heavens also, and came down; and darkness\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>under his feet.\u00a011<\/sup>\u00a0And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: and he was seen upon the wings of the wind.\u00a012<\/sup>\u00a0And he made darkness pavilions round about him, dark waters,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>thick clouds of the skies.\u00a0\u00a013<\/sup>\u00a0Through the brightness before him were coals of fire kindled.\u00a014<\/sup>\u00a0The\u00a0LORD\u00a0thundered from heaven, and the most High uttered his voice.\u00a015<\/sup>\u00a0And he sent out arrows, and scattered them; lightning, and discomfited them.\u00a016<\/sup>\u00a0And the channels of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were discovered, at the rebuking of the\u00a0LORD, at the blast of the breath of his nostrils.\u00a017<\/sup>\u00a0He sent from above, he took me; he drew me out of many waters;\u00a0\u00a018<\/sup>\u00a0He delivered me from my strong enemy,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>from them that hated me: for they were too strong for me.\u00a019<\/sup>\u00a0They prevented me in the day of my calamity: but the\u00a0LORD\u00a0was my stay.\u00a020<\/sup>\u00a0He brought me forth also into a large place: he delivered me, because he delighted in me.\u00a021<\/sup>\u00a0The\u00a0LORD\u00a0rewarded me according to my righteousness: according to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me.\u00a022<\/sup>\u00a0For I have kept the ways of the\u00a0LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God.\u00a023<\/sup>\u00a0For all his judgments\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>before me: and\u00a0as for\u00a0<\/em>his statutes, I did not depart from them.\u00a024<\/sup>\u00a0I was also upright before him, and have kept myself from mine iniquity.\u00a0\u00a025<\/sup>\u00a0Therefore the\u00a0LORDhath recompensed me according to my righteousness; according to my cleanness in his eye sight.\u00a0\u00a026<\/sup>\u00a0With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>with the upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright.\u00a027<\/sup>\u00a0With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself unsavoury.\u00a0\u00a028<\/sup>\u00a0And the afflicted people thou wilt save: but thine eyes\u00a0are\u00a0<\/em>upon the haughty,\u00a0that\u00a0<\/em>thou mayest bring\u00a0them\u00a0<\/em>down.\u00a029<\/sup>\u00a0For thou\u00a0art\u00a0<\/em>my lamp, O\u00a0LORD: and the\u00a0LORD\u00a0will lighten my darkness.\u00a0\u00a030<\/sup>\u00a0For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall.\u00a0\u00a031<\/sup>\u00a0As for\u00a0<\/em>God, his way\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>perfect; the word of the\u00a0LORD\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>tried: he\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>a buckler to all them that trust in him.\u00a032<\/sup>\u00a0For who\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>God, save the\u00a0LORD? and who\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>a rock, save our God?\u00a033<\/sup>\u00a0God\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>my strength\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>power: and he maketh my way perfect.\u00a0\u00a034<\/sup>\u00a0He maketh my feet like hinds\u2019\u00a0feet:\u00a0<\/em>and setteth me upon my high places.\u00a0\u00a035<\/sup>\u00a0He teacheth my hands to war; so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.\u00a0\u00a036<\/sup>Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy gentleness hath made me great.\u00a0\u00a037<\/sup>\u00a0Thou hast enlarged my steps under me; so that my feet did not slip.\u00a0\u00a038<\/sup>\u00a0I have pursued mine enemies, and destroyed them; and turned not again until I had consumed them.\u00a039<\/sup>\u00a0And I have consumed them, and wounded them, that they could not arise: yea, they are fallen under my feet.\u00a040<\/sup>\u00a0For thou hast girded me with strength to battle: them that rose up against me hast thou subdued under me.\u00a0\u00a041<\/sup>\u00a0Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me.\u00a042<\/sup>\u00a0They looked, but\u00a0there was\u00a0<\/em>none to save;\u00a0even\u00a0<\/em>unto the\u00a0LORD, but he answered them not.\u00a043<\/sup>\u00a0Then did I beat them as small as the dust of the earth, I did stamp them as the mire of the street,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>did spread them abroad.\u00a044<\/sup>\u00a0Thou also hast delivered me from the strivings of my people, thou hast kept me\u00a0to be\u00a0<\/em>head of the heathen: a people\u00a0which\u00a0<\/em>I knew not shall serve me.\u00a045<\/sup>\u00a0Strangers shall submit themselves unto me: as soon as they hear, they shall be obedient unto me.\u00a0\u00a046<\/sup>\u00a0Strangers shall fade away, and they shall be afraid out of their close places.\u00a047<\/sup>\u00a0The\u00a0LORD\u00a0liveth; and blessed\u00a0be\u00a0<\/em>my rock; and exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation.\u00a048<\/sup>It\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>God that avengeth me, and that bringeth down the people under me,\u00a0\u00a049<\/sup>\u00a0And that bringeth me forth from mine enemies: thou also hast lifted me up on high above them that rose up against me: thou hast delivered me from the violent man.\u00a050<\/sup>\u00a0Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O\u00a0LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name.\u00a051<\/sup>\u00a0He is\u00a0<\/em>the tower of salvation for his king: and sheweth mercy to his anointed, unto David, and to his seed for evermore.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This chapter contains David’s song of praise (also recorded in Psalm 18), which was probably composed shortly after the battle on Mount Gilboa where King Saul fell. It marks the fullfillment of the promise made to David when the prophet Samuel annointed him to be king over Israel. David gives us a beautiful list of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6673"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6673"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6673\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16223,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6673\/revisions\/16223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6673"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6673"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6673"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}